Paul George Return from Leg Injury Soon? Ready to Play But Still Not Cleared

Paul George of Indiana Pacers who was injured playing in a scrimmage for Team USA on Aug 1, 2014, has expressed his interest in coming back into the game.

George told reporters on Saturday, "I feel good, but it's not just me that has to feel good," reported IB Times. "Everyone has to feel good about it. So that's what we're waiting on. It could be close, it could be not. But everybody's got to be on the same page with this."  

Meanwhile, Pacers coach Frank Vogel said that George isn't ready yet and the team would let the media know when he gets ready, according to USA Today. Vogel also added that George has reported minimal pain during practice sessions but he wouldn't put a percentage on how he feels.

David West, George's teammate, noted that "He (George) wants to play bad." West added that since his teammate has 12 more years to play, he has to be smart and patient and get well soon. He also added that he personally feels George shouldn't trouble himself much; rather rest well and recover completely for the long run, noted NBA.    

Roy Hibbert told ESPN that he thought George would be back on Mar. 14 or 21, but his predictions went wrong. The Pacers entered the final fortnight of the season still believing that their franchise player can return.

"Seeing the things he does in practice, it's awesome. He's coming. But I don't know what's going on with, I'm not a part of it. The training staff hasn't told us what they're planning on doing, and the front office doesn't. So they collectively talk. But the things he does in practice looks like the old PG, so whenever he comes back he'll be good ... People are going to be surprised. He's going to have a big play his first couple of possessions back," Hibbert said, as quoted by NBA.

Though George's injury had been a setback for the team for a while, they seem to have coped, somehow.

Simmon Hill of Indiana Pacers said, "It's definitely not the team we had last year," quoted NBA. "Through all the ups and downs, we were able to win games. If we wasn't playing so well at the offensive end, or we wasn't playing so well at the defensive end, we had experience. We had a close-knit team. But we've got a lot of new faces. A lot of guys who may not have played last year are playing a lot more this year. It's an adjustment period."